Award: £90,000.00
Location: Lincolnshire
Mr D, from Louth in Lincolnshire, mistakenly believed the insurers for the company who were to blame for his accident at work would quickly settle his claim for compensation. Mr D, a fencer, fell into an unguarded ditch at a construction site in Yorkshire. He fell awkwardly trapping his left arm behind his back. He had to be freed by the fire brigade and was taken to the local hospital by ambulance. The shoulder muscles were weakened resulting in numerous painful dislocations. Mr D was absent from work for more than 3 years.
ASD Solicitors sought damages for more than 3 years loss of earnings, compensation for the pain and suffering Mr D endured and care received from family members. The problem was the insurers for the Company responsible didn’t believe Mr D. First they instructed a private investigator to follow and video him going about his normal day. When this failed to show anything they instructed two medical experts who came to the conclusion that Mr D was deliberately dislocating his shoulder in order to gain access to Morphine. The insurers failed to make any reasonable offers and the matter was listed for a trial.
Eventually, almost 7 years after the initial letter of claim, and 3 weeks before a 3 day trial, a reasonable offer was made and the Claimant’s claim was settled for over £90,000. Without ASD, Mr D would have received nothing. Richard Meggitt, Solicitor at ASD and part of the serious injury team said “the tactics employed by the insurer caused almost as much damage and stress to my client as the initial injury. The tactics employed in this case show to what lengths insurers will go to discredit claimants. You cannot trust an insurer to help you if you have been injured. Local people should instruct a local Solicitor”.